“.......Even with all the new exposures, it was the butches that I was drawn to. These people had shed social projections and restrictions and were unabashedly true to themselves. They were me, I was just younger and a little clueless. These were butch women of all varieties who held real jobs, important jobs, regular jobs and some with no jobs. They kept people safe, they built roads and cities, they managed the bank, they worked in some of the first tech jobs I'd ever heard of. They literally represented slices of life that I hadn’t ever seen before — in reflection, I see now what they were doing was living regular boring lives. ⁠ ⁠ These NYC butches were also the kindest and most open-hearted people I had ever encountered up to that point, truly. They saw me at face value the moment I walked into Henrietta Hudson’s...and it all just clicked.⁠ ⁠ In NYC and in these butches, I saw a path and a life that was suddenly available to me. Things that i had never seen portrayed in a positive way, never necessarily easy, but accessible. It was life-altering - turns out, I *could* just be me as always.⁠ ⁠ I am now 48, I live in Portland, OR and I co-own the sewing factory where these photos were taken. I am fully myself, as always, and yet a little more every year. I still get yanked out of virtually every women’s restroom I use and I am okay with it — i’ve dropped a lot of the hate and aggression that surrounded me for so much of my life. My current motto is, generally, just kill them with kindness because, really, most folks are just doing their best out there.⁠ ⁠ they say: THIS IS THE WOMEN’S RESTROOM.⁠ ⁠ with a smirk/smile, I say: I know. you’ll be fine.”⁠ ⁠ - @8ptverdana @spooltown ⁠ ⁠ Excerpt taken from "Be Quiet. Be Strong." - full essay over at Patreon.com/ButchIsNotADirtyWord - link in stories⁠ ⁠ 📸 by @esthergoodboy⁠ ⁠ 😍😍😍 #butch #butchisnotadirtyword #butchdyke #butchdykes #butchlesbian #butchlesbians #lesbiansofinstagram #dykesofinstagram #butchesofinstagram #lgbtq #lgbtqia #lgbtqiaplus #gender #gay #queer⁠ #pride #gaypride #gaypride2022 ⁠#queerportrait #queerportraits #gayportrait #portraitphotography #pdx #pdxgay #smallbusinesspdx